St Nicholas Church

In tranquil gardens behind Angmering's Library once stood the old parish
church of East Angmering, dedicated to St Nicholas. Barely 130 metres to
west was the parish church of West Angmering - this still stands today
and is known as St Margaret's. Following the Reformation, the two benefices
(plus that of Bargham in the north of Angmering) were amalgamated (circa 1573)
into the single parish that we know today.

The only indication that St Nicholas' Church stood here is a
representative pile of flint stones plus a small part of a column and its
plinth. A cast bronze plaque (see below right) placed on these stones by
The Angmering Society records that a church stood on this site for 400 years
between the 12th and 16th centuries.
However, it is probable that an even earlier Saxon church was erected here,
possibly in the 10th or 11th century although it may not necessarily have been
dedicated to St Nicholas at that time.

After the demolition of St. Nicholas' Church in the late 16th century,
the land was put into use as garden or allotments. The tithe map of 1839
describes it as 'garden' owned by the Rector of St. Margaret's. Some early
Ordnance Maps mark the site (erroneously) as the ruins of 'St. Peter's Church'.

For many years the ground was used as gardens and a recreational area
for the children attending Older's Charity School. Following the closure of the
School in 1966 and its subsequent conversion into the present village library,
the land was sold to a local builder who applied for planning permission for
housing development. This was refused and in 1978 the site was purchased by
Arun District Council and leased to Angmering Parish Council as a recreational
area for the village. On May 8th 1980 it was officially opened by Her Grace
Lavinia, Duchess of Norfolk as St. Nicholas' Garden.

From surviving Wills, it can be determined that few (if any) burials
took place after 1560 - no registers survive. Indeed, it is unlikely that any
registers were ever established. Those of St Margaret's itself did not commence
until 1562. The known rectors of St Nicholas' Church are as follows:

1263

Engeraud
de Brok

bef

1432

Edward
Stoppe

bef

1302

Peter de
Dene (intruded)

1434

Thomas
Hardy

1302

Ralph de
Allegate

1478

David
Barnard

1371

Adam

bef

1516

John
Prideaux (Prediaux)

1380

John
Watersfeld

1516

Thomas
Combes

1384

John
Russell

1528

Edward
Hygons

1385

Richard
Cloupp

1528

Christopher Ellis (Elys)

1386

John
Boure

1548

William
Foster

1397

John
Shelford

bef

1561

St. John
Henhays (? curate)

bef

1404

John
Bowrer

1579

Walter
Chatfylde

1404

John
Martyn

1581

Richard
Humfrey

1974 EXCAVATIONS

In 1974, a unit from the Sussex Archaeological Society led by Dr Owen
Bedwin excavated the site and his findings are recorded in an article written
by him in SAC Vol. 113 (1975). A broad summary of the findings are detailed
below.

General

Very little remained of any walls above the foundations, the material
from these walls no doubt having been robbed and used in the construction of
other properties in the village. Not a single piece of mortared masonry with
flints was found in the demolition debris. Dr Bedwin suggests that this may be
indicative of the building being systematically demolished quickly rather than
slow haphazard decay. Glazed floor tiles were found mortared in position in a
few places. Dr Bedwin's article in SAC Vol. 13 runs to 18 pages and it is
recommended that readers who are interested in greater detail of the excavation
look at the complete article, a copy of which may be found in Angmering Library
in the Local Studies folders. The SAC article also contains 10 photographic
plates and detailed diagrams of the foundations.

It is believed the church developed in four different stages. The
reconstructed ground plans of these are shown below:

Phase 1 (Late Saxon)

This stage of the development is characterised by the apsidal shape of
the chancel which was typical of Saxon churches. The quality of the mortar at
this phase was the best and most tenacious found on the whole site. The
foundations were of unmortared flint and in one location several Roman tiles
were found which might have come from the Romano-British villa one mile to the
west. There was some slight evidence that there may have been an even earlier
Saxon church on the site. A reconstruction of the church can be seen below.

Phase 2 (c1200)

In this phase, the nave was lenghtened and broadened. Most of the Saxon
walls were demolished and the new walls erected in the chancel were generally
more feeble than the Saxon ones, the foundations being quite shallow. The
mortar used was powdery and friable. Three pottery sherds in the foundations
help date this structure.

Phase 3 (14th Century)

It was the mortar which helped identify the development of this phase
together with a piece of 14thC pottery discovered near the founadtions. The
mortar was different in colour to the earlier phases, contained beach sand and
the quality was better than Phase 2. A chapel was added on substantial
foundations as was a new well-built eastern end wall to the chancel. A porch
was also added at this time at the western end.

Phase 4 (Late 14th or 15th Century)

A tower was built on the south side of the church which meant
demolishing part of the chapel. A second porch was added on the west side of
this tower. The tower was built on massive foundations and the quality of the
mortar was quite strong. Again, a small pottery sherd from the 14th Century in
the foundations helps date the tower and, by the mortar type, the porch also.
Some 45 glazed floor tiles, or parts of tiles, were found mortared into place
between the doorway of the tower and the nave. A reconstruction of the church
can be seen below.

A reconstruction of the earliest Saxon
Church

A
reconstruction of the final church 14th or 15thC

Burials

Among the features discovered during the excavations were two
elaborately built tombs within the Church. Both were constructed of carefully
shaped chalk blocks and were lined with plaster. One was an altar tomb
containing the skeleton of a man estimated to be about forty years old, with
the remains of a pewter chalice, presumably buried with the corpse. Burial
beneath the altar was an honour usually reserved for members of the Clergy but
there was no supporting documentary evidence found to identify this particular
person.

The other significant burial was a double tomb found beneath
the floor of the nave containing two female skeletons separated by a thin
vertical partition of chalk blocks. Again there was no supporting evidence for
identification.

There were several other less sophisticated interments within the church
and many outside. Outside the church, a grave was found almost wherever a
trowel was put into the ground. The main graveyard was located rather unusually
on on the north side of the Church but this area was not excavated. Its
position was due to the fact that on the south side of the church, the ground
rapidly fell away down a bank where the houses in Church Road are located
today.

Glazing and Decoration

Fragments of painted wall plaster suggested that the interior of the
Church was decorated with murals similar to those to be seen at Hardham and
other early Churches in Sussex. Glazed floor tiles and pieces of dull red
painted glass (2 - 4 mm thick) were also found, indicating an unusually high
level of decoration for this Church.

Other items found

Amongst the small items discovered in the debris was a circular object
made of lead, four centimetres in diameter which was identified as a Papal Bull
belonging to the time of Pope Boniface IX (1389-1404). This find suggested some
direct communication between the Pope and Angmering. A small pendant or brooch
was found of gilt on silver in the demolition debris inside the chancel - its
date could not be established. Additionally, some coins were found. The first
was a brass jetton from Nurenburg of the late 16thC and the second was a worn
silver penny from the reign of Richard I (1189-1199). The last was a William
III copper halfpenny dated 1699, clearly lost on the site at a later
date.

2015 EXCAVATIONS

In 2015, a team from Worthing Archaeological Society (WAS), and local
volunteers, carried out excavations on the site over a two week period
commencing 6th June. They had previously carried out a geophysical survey in
2013 to determine broadly the locations of the church walls or other features.
This allowed them to identify sites of potential interest where discrete
trenches could be dug. The excavations were commissioned by Angmering Parish
Council.

General

It should be noted that this specific article on the 2015 excavations is
not an official report and is based entirely upon observations and discussions
of the author with the WAS team leaders who were exceptionally helpful to
visitors to the site including children from both Primary schools who
participated in the dig during its second week. The WAS team suggested that,
together with the excavations of the 1974 and 2015 digs, some 90% of the
church's walls had been unearthed over the two digs. No doubt a report will be
issued later to Angmering Parish Council when the results of the excavations
have been analysed at which time it will hopefully be possible for a summary to
be published on this page.

Burials

It was not the intention to seek burial places; however, in the course
of tracing walls, some became evident. The tops of two adjoining plaster lined
tombs were found in the centre of the nave but the archaeologists made no
attempt to probe deeper. Close by, in two locations in two different trenches,
some fragments of bone were discovered.

Tower location

A trench was cut over the south-east corner of what Dr Bedwin concluded
was the tower from his 1974 excavation. Certainly, there were substantial flint
foundations of the corner of a building to be seen (see photo below).
However, what puzzled the archeologists was that would the Normans have built
the tower of a church just 3 metres from a significant 4.5 metres drop of the
ancient river bank when there would have been a safer and more conventional
place to build it at the west end of the church, as in the case of St
Margaret's Church just 100 metres away? At the end of the excavation, a
previously unknown photo of the west end of the 1974 excavations was found
which showed substantial square foundations which may have been the site of the
tower and not a porch as Dr Bedwin had concluded. Could Dr Bedwin's "tower"
have actually been a side chapel? The conclusions in the final report are
awaited with interest.

Excavation of SE Chancel Wall

This was probably the most interesting of the trenches excavated with
much going on and needing some analysis (see photo below). However,
there were clearly substantial Norman foundations over the top of what appeared
to be the original late-Saxon foundations. An extension of the trench appeared
to confirm the apsidal shape of the Saxon chancel wall. The more substantial SE
foundations of the Norman chancel wall could clearly be seen.

Other Finds

There were numerous small finds - some medieval but others 18th to 20th
century - perhaps reflecting the fact St Nicholas Gardens were used by William
Older's Charity School as a recreation area in earlier times. This may account
for numerous buttons found. However, medieval pottery and floor tiles, coins,
the head and shoulders of a small 18thC china doll, a Bronze Age piece of
worked flint, and metal artifacts were also found. Additionally, a piece of
Horsham slab was found. This is interesting as it could suggest that the Norman
church was roofed in that material, it being a useful stone for building when
the site was robbed of materials in the 16thC. Painted floor tiles would also
have been prized, but an excellent small fragment was found during the dig
(see photo below - right).

Excavation north of north wall

The geophysical survey in 2013 had identified what appeared to be
foundations north of the church's north wall. However, the trenches found that
these were the drainage system and concrete covering of a cesspit to the
William Olders's Charity School's toilet block built in the late-19thC or
early-20thC.